(no subject)

[heidi]

This has definitely been the worst month of my life. Not a day has gone by that I haven't sobbed with my family and friends.

I got back to Miami on the sixth, and three days later, my parents arrived with my sister and her 14 month old baby. We spent all of Wednesday and Thursday in mourning, a sort of semi-shiva at my parents', and the funeral was Friday. More shiva and a memorial service on Sunday, and some day I'll be able to get my memories under control and write about how it feels to hold your sister as they remove her husband's breathing tube, or see him in his bed ten minutes later and know that there's nothing of him left there at all, or watch as his casket is raised into a crypt right under a skylight, right under the sky that he'll never lift his daughter into.

It's insane, when you think about it. In 42 hours, I went from having the time of my life at Lumos to my brother in law, who I've known since he was 19, lying in a hospital bed with his brain waves flatlined.

Hug the people you love - spend time with them even if you've only met them online - because you never know when you're going to lose them. Brian was an amazing, active, dynamic, energetic and sweet guy, and we'll never have him back again.

And, of course, amid all that, I had YMs and emails calling me a plagiarist because I didn't do MLA citations for a fic that I wrote over five years ago, or because I stupidly forgot to cite a Prefab Sprout song, or a Shel Silverstein poem, or three lines from Cicero. Yes, I was stupid to forget to cite them, and I am sorry that I did, and that in the ensuing years, I didn't go back and reread the fic and realise it at some point along the way. I went onto FA yesterday and fixed them there, and I think I've caught everything, and I don't think it's up anywhere else but on the Paradise list - I've emailed Yael about editing those in the files section. If I didn't, please feel free to follow FA's copyright infringement policy from the Terms of Use - if you do, the usual procedure will kick in as it did this past weekend, and I'll have to correct it or have the fic pulled down. I don't know, at this point, if I'm going to opt to leave everything up there going forward, but I also don't feel capable of making that kind of decision at this time. It's been a very long month and a very long week.

There's a discussion I tried to have five years ago about plagiarism - what is it, where are the lines drawn, how do we cite, how should we cite - but it often disolved and devolves into extremism. I hope it stops because there are some terrific people - and some people who are complaining about me in this past week - who have used lines from other sources in the fics they've written and haven't done MLA style citations, so maybe we do need to again revisit the issue of disclaimers and what should and should not go into them. The discussion didn't go anywhere five years ago, and when I've brought it up since then, it's never gotten much attention. Maybe now, it will.

Comments

[marag.livejournal.com]

I'm not going into the plagiarism thing, because right now, it's not what's important. ::hugs you:: I haven't known you very long, but I'm very sorry to hear about your brother-in-law, and I hope that life gets better.

[rachet.livejournal.com]

*hugs* May the following days get better for you.

[photosinensis.livejournal.com]

Might I suggest screening comments to this post? Because it seems to me that it's going to get a lot of traffic from visitors who've read the bad_penny stories, and who might wish to leave a few nasty comments.

On the same note, I think that going all out for formal citations in fiction of any kind are extreme, but simple footnotes that credit the original author/speaker of the quote should be fine, if credit isn't given in the text. The whole "OMG you've got to use formal citations" business is utter crap, though I won't argue the need to give credit where it is due.

[shezan.livejournal.com]

Because it seems to me that it's going to get a lot of traffic from visitors who've read the bad_penny stories, and who might wish to leave a few nasty comments.

What does this tell us of the kind of people who've been mounting this campaign, huh? Whatever valid point they may have had at the outset is simply drowned by the lynch mob climate they've created.

[shezan.livejournal.com]

Look, hang in there and damn the imbeciles. I have been flabbergasted in recent days by the savagery and pig-headedness of people who can't even spell "plagiarize" properly (let alone master cut 'n paste, I expect.) fearsclave summed it best somewhere else when he wrote (about Cassie): I view plagiarism as something that gentlemen do not do. Like get caught in flagrante with the Royal Welch Fusiliers' goat.

Gentlemen also do not start screaming at length about what Mr. X was found doing with said goat, and vindictively and obsessively cataloging every single incident where Mr. X was seen in public with a barnyard animal in the vicinity, and accusing them, on the flimsiest evidence, of cheating at cards, backing out of duels, and adulterating the Archbishop of York's claret with arsenic. Doing so displays character flaws worse than Mr. X's little predilection for Royal Goats.

[lexin.livejournal.com]

Word. Mind you, I was shut down summarily for saying so.

[aome.livejournal.com]

I've ached for you, for all the above reasons, all this month. And I have, indeed, hugged Will very tightly.

Meanwhile, is there anything I can do to make your life a little easier or better right now? I'd cook you a casserole or babysit if you lived closer. I hope you can find a chance to give yourself a little gift of peace - a manicure or dinner out with A, or something. You've been in my thoughts.

*hug*

[heidi8.livejournal.com]

Just please be understanding if I don't manage to get my act together enough to send your box of lovely lendings back for another week or so. I've read your recent posts, and I send you all the hugs in the world right back to you.

[emmagrant01.livejournal.com]

*hugs*

With everything you've been through with your family, you would have been well within reason to tell them to straighten out their fucking priorities.

I'm glad to hear from you, though. I had been wondering how you were holding up.

[heidi8.livejournal.com]

I would have if it didn't impact people who I work with too. But it has, and it's just... I just don't know how to even put it into words.

[marie-j-granger.livejournal.com]

Oh, Heidi, I'm... I've been feeling terrible about all you and your family are going through right now. I can hardly imagine how hard all of this has been for all of you and I know it'll never really go away. *hugs tightly*

As for the plagiarism issues, it's awful that people who have just decided it's a big issue are attacking you about it, especially now. As for how to cite things, I don't see the need to use MLA format as long as you credit the original source somehow.

[thistlerose.livejournal.com]

*hug*

[msbunburyist.livejournal.com]

*hugs you*

I know how hard it's been. I'm sorry that I can't be more helpful to you -- I wish I could be there, if only to mind the little ones or similar.

*more hugs*

[bekkio.livejournal.com]

Nothing much to add except a big, huge hug. You and your family are in my thoughts and prayers.

[misscake]

I'm so sorry for everything that's happened to you this month. May you have peace soon.

I'm so sorry

[sablewilde.livejournal.com]

Heidi,
I'm so sorry to hear of this dreadful loss.
I know, that at the moment, there is nothing I can say that will be of much consolation, but, I want you to know that you and your family are in my thoughts and prayers. I'm saddened to hear that at this awful time, some people have chosen to resort to inappropriate and cowardly attacks upon you. Wishing you and your family the peace and the strength to get through this.
Take care honey
Best wishes
Sable

[february-sea.livejournal.com]

Hey, sweetheart. You have very much been in my thoughts this past while. I'm very glad to see you post--keep your attention where it needs to be and don't worry about anything else. You know what's important.

blessed be to you and all of yours, Heidi.

Olivia

[cleverthylacine]

****hugs**** I am so very sorry for your losses.

Back in 2002, I was getting a lot of attention for House of Ill Faith, and then in 2003 OOTP came out, and I was very confused, because that wasn't the Arabella Figg I'd written about at all, and I had been SO SURE my Arabella was canon.

It turned out that I had unwittingly lifted the Arabella characterisation I had used wholesale from PtQ--it had made so much sense to me that I had never realised it wasn't canon.

Riley was very gracious about this; but it just brought home to me how easy it is for people who mean well and are by no means stupid to cross-pollinate in fandom.

[lexin.livejournal.com]

IMO, half the point of writing fan-fiction is to cross-pollinate. That's why some tropes become "fanon".

[angelamermaid.livejournal.com]

I'm sad that you're sad, and I'm sad that we share the experiences of suddenly losing a loved one recently. *hugsz*

[jellybellys.livejournal.com]

I thought the whole thing was horrendously tacky and spiteful, myself. I was going to say something along those lines over at Journal Fen, but one, I don't have an account, and two, I really, really would rather shove a porcupine up my ass then get involved in a fandom brou-ha-ha.

Now, I know you're friends with Cassandra Claire and this might anger you, but I think the situations where you two were accused of plagiarism are very different. EXTREMELY different, and I can't help but think the person who wrote that about you is a bitter, bitter person. Why? I don't know.

I can't condone what CC did, because I think what she did was wrong, but you, to me, cited your sources at least SOMEWHAT. It seemed much more of a case of forgetfulness when you didn't then it did with CC.

And I must say it's made me highly paranoid that someone is going to accuse me of plagiarism myself. I've reread my fics, going, oh god, that line sounds vaguely similar to such-and-such fic or show or movie or whatever, and I didn't mention that in my author notes! Someone is going to call me a plagiarist! For instance, in one scene in one of my fics I realized the dialog (after I wrote it) was similar to a scene in "How Harry Potter Got His Groove Back," so I wrote something along the lines in my author's notes that that particular scene had been "inspired" by a scene in HHPGHGB. I certainly didn't quote THE ENTIRE SCENE, as I had written a DIFFERENT SCENE, but I realized that that was probably where my writing had come from, and not my own brain, so I cited it. But now I have an insane urge to pick over every one of my fics with a fine-toothed comb and cite everything that anyone could possibly call me a "plagiarist" about.

If you really did threaten people with your occupation, I can't condone that, but I forgive you. You're only human, and I understand wanting to stand up for a friend.

I just can't fathom what kind of person would write something like that, KNOWING what you are going through right now, and for that, I'm very sorry Heidi. Fandom BS is so ridiculously trivial in comparison to real life, yet this person does not seem to care.

I obviously am also very sorry about your brother in law. I've known my own brother in law since I was nine, and I can't imagine how awful it would be if he died. Death of my loved ones is the worst thing I can think of, and for it to happen so young....but I know you and your sister and your family will be strong, and you will be alright. I wish you the best.

[storm-maven.livejournal.com]

You've been through a lot and the last thing you need to think about is fanfiction. Don't let this bullshit get to you. Hell, don't even bring it up until YOU'RE ready. From everything I've read thus far, the shit is tiring as it is.

[cadey.livejournal.com]

*hugs* Heidi, I'm so sorry about your losses that you've had.

And to me, this is just crass. Even though I've been keeping my nose out of fandom and its many politiks, and I really have no idea whatsoever what is said, what's going on, or anything, it's just damn dumb to accuse someone of plagarism.

There is nothing original out there. It's just different spins on the same story. I think Shakespeare said that, just so I cite my sources.

Anyway, I hope things get better for you soon. You don't deserve all the drama.

[folk.livejournal.com]

So sorry I missed your IMs while I was AFK over the last while. You've been in my thoughts a lot. And forget fandom, for a while, until you have the resources to deal with it again.

[annearchy.livejournal.com]

I've been feeling very sad for you, Heidi. This has to be a horribly painful time in your life. All I can do is send lots of hugs.

[cruisedirector]

I've been away for much of what's been going on and I'm sorry to be so late commenting, but I just wanted you to know how sorry I am. I hope you and your sister and the rest of your family are coping as best you can.

[mmichelle.livejournal.com]

♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

[kimmparker.livejournal.com]

*HUG* hun. I wish there were more I could do from this far away, let me know if there is ANYTHING.

[nut-shell.livejournal.com]

*hugs* I'm so sorry for all you're going through.

[roguebitch.livejournal.com]

Oh my gosh, people can be rotten -- I am so sorry that the insult of fandom is adding to the injury of losing your loved one. Please be kind to yourself. *hugs*

[poconell.livejournal.com]

I'm sorry I didn't get a chance to see you at Lumos when you were happy and enjoying yourself amongst your friends. I remember making a mental note to seek you out and say "Hi", but I got caught up in other things and it never happened.

It goes to show how important it is to appreciate the good times in our lives. Just like you were doing.

::hugs::